I never said Wike cannot father a child: PDP chairman Ayu

The National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, said he never made any comment about Nyesom Wike and has no intention to reply to the governor.

Ayu made the comment on Saturday while reacting to reports by Lawal Garba and Igbere TV.

Reacting to the reports, Ayu said: “My attention has been drawn to mischievous and senseless posts on social media.

“One post, (from one Lawal Garba, but purporting to be from me states that I say I cannot talk to a man who “cannot father a child!”

“Another post, with a photograph of Wike and a lady with some children (from Igbere TV) claims that the governor is not “the biological father of his three kids.”

“Nothing can be more diabolical, senseless and amateurish. Descending so low is neither in my character nor nature.

“Those planting these stories against the PDP and myself are simply showing their lack of intelligence.

“I state, categorically and without equivocation, that the posts are completely false. Even the inelegant construction of the posts puts them beneath my personality.

“I never said anything after Wike’s statements the other day and do not intend to say anything in response.”

Wike vs Ayu

For calling his supporters “children,” Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State described the PDP National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, as arrogant and an ingrate.

He said the people that Ayu described as children brought him from gutter and placed him in the position he currently occupies.

The governor made the comment during the commissioning of Omerelu Internal roads in the Ikwerre Local Government Area of the state.

His comment was in response to Mr. Ayu’s statement where he said the people calling for his resignation are children.

The PDP chairman said he will not resign, despite calls by pressure groups and some PDP governors.

However, Mr Ayu’s resignation has been Wike’s major demand from the party’s presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar before he considers pledging his support.

At their meeting in London, last Thursday, the governor and his team told Atiku that they would only negotiate with him for his support if Mr. Ayu steps down and is replaced by a candidate from the southern zone of the country.

Calls have since followed the meeting – asking that Mr. Ayu resigns as he promised before the party’s primary in June.

But in his response, Mr. Ayu said he was elected for a tenure of four years and is yet to complete a year.

“I co-founded the PDP in Nigeria and some boys who don’t know how we struggled and what we went through can’t cause problems for the party. When we started the PDP, we did not know those boys, they are children, and they don’t know why we founded the party. We will not agree with one person to come and destroy our party,” Ayu said.

In his address on Thursday, Mr Wike challenged the PDP Chairman to prove himself as a man of honour and fulfil his promise to step down should the northern region produce the presidential candidate.

“Somebody said those of you who said the right thing must be done are boys; they are children. You can imagine what power can do. You can imagine how ingratitude…how people can be ingrates,” he said, faulting Mr Ayu for failing to bring peace to the party.

“Dr Ayu said we are children. Yes, the children brought you to be chairman of the party, the children brought you from the gutter to make you chairman. You were impeached and sacked. Arrogance cannot take you anywhere.”

He went ahead to challenge Mr Ayu to secure the votes of his state, Benue, come 2023.